Once On This Island (NYC) NYC Reviews and Tickets

"A ravishing revival...A pastiche Caribbean score whose words are restrained and delicately rhymed but whose music is relentlessly grabby and emotional...Arden has aced every theatrical trick he’s torn from the ancient handbook, freshening the show, and the tricks, in the process...The hallmark ingenuity, warmth, and intensity bordering on excess that characterize Arden’s style is recapitulated everywhere within the production, from the frankly stupendous singing to the electric choreography."
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"After seeing the imaginative and dynamic 'Once on This Island,' you may feel that once is not enough...'Once on This Island' is patchy in parts. Its best-known songs bring down the house, but there are also languors. And the central story of female sacrifice and degradation is treated as more inspirational than it actually is. But it is hard to imagine a better account of the show than the one that Arden and his team have assembled. It sings, dances, and conjures up a storm."
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“A vivid, celebratory revival...If only the story itself were a better one...While the score has some standout numbers, it feels largely generic...Arden’s production, though, is striking proof that a play, or a musical, can be more than the sum of its parts. Working with an inspired design team, an excellent choreographer (Camille A. Brown), and an all-around stellar cast, Arden has created a sparkling firework of a show that consistently transcends its own source material.”
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"A joyful hymn to community and resilience...Together with his resourceful design team and cast of expressive, vocally gifted performers, Arden has approached the piece with the nurturing hand it requires—striking a balance between child-like story theater and folkloric ritual...Demonstrates an impressive leap in maturity and creative vision for Arden...While the early scenes flirt with a whimsical quality that might easily turn cloying, the dramatic integrity of the piece prevails."
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"The tale is as timely as ever...The four gods are all crowdpleasers with standout moments...But, while Salonga is undoubtedly the biggest Broadway draw of the bunch, her performance is overshadowed by Newell, whose energetic 'Mama Will Provide' is a highlight...Ti Moune’s sweetness and naiveté mixes with Kilgore’s killer pipes and dance moves for a dynamite performance filled with heart...Nothing feels rushed. It’s island time, after all, and it’s filled with joy."
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"An uplifting revival...The ungainly in-the-round stage of Broadway’s Circle in the Square is put to imaginative use...Ahrens and Flaherty, a well-matched team, produced more than twenty songs for this musical. Besides being perfectly lovely, they also advance the narrative in ways rarely seen...A sequence of dramatic songs – from 'Waiting for Life to Begin' through the heartbreaking 'Forever Yours' – take Ti Moune on the journey of love.
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"This production is on first impression, immediately involving...If this is myth, it is weak stuff, its power and mystery insisted upon but not felt. If it means to offer a moral lesson, it is even weaker...Why then do we tell this story? Maybe because it makes us feel morally sensitive without the labor of being so...But Ti Moune is strong only because she doesn’t mind being a victim. Little about this love is admirable, and its self-sacrifice is unconvincing."
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"A smashing revival...Arden’s exuberant staging conjures a spell that is devastatingly timely yet affectingly timeless...Much of the show’s charm derives from its seamless interweaving of narrative, song, and dance...A confident, swinging cast is blessed with showcase numbers...Kilgore, like this revival itself, is no imitation but a triumph in her own right, striking exactly the right balance between innocence and spirituality, youth and experience. She’s just wonderful."
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"A first-rate revival...Director Michael Arden and set designer Dane Laffrey do a grand job of transforming the in-the-round stage of Circle in the Square Theatre...The 90-minute musical is favored with some rich and rollicking Ahrens and Flaherty melodies; Alex Newell’s 'Mama Will Provide' will get your blood pumping, and the heartfelt performances will put you in a generous frame of mind — at a time of year when spreading good cheer is the general idea."
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"A justly loved one-act musical...No radical revisionism...But as compared with previously major stagings of the work, Arden’s in-the-round production notably steps back from the cruise-ship version of the Caribbean popular in the early years of stagings of this show...The sculpted live-ness of the conceit makes for a very au courant and youth-friendly staging…This is all the way it should be with 'Island,' a 90-minute pleasure all about reviving a story still very much of use."
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"Broadway’s bewitching revival of Ahrens and Flaherty’s 'Once on This Island' is filled with beauty...Arden’s smart and timely concept underscores the elemental and emotional tempests at work in the musical fable that celebrates love, resilience, and the spirit of hope...Over a fast-moving 90 minutes, the score mixes captivating calypso beats and warm ballads, all brought to life vividly by the fine-tuned cast. Exuberant dancing adds bursts of excitement."
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"Emphasizing the musical’s themes of natural disaster and economic inequality, director Michael Arden brings an unexpected dose of gritty realism, while also honoring its gorgeous score of dynamic group numbers and tender ballads. Vocal fireworks and full-bodied dance choreography imbue spirituality and joyful theatricality...Kilgore and the superb supporting cast essentially grab the audience and proceed to take it on an exciting, emotional, and extraordinary journey."
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"A production that comes to life in a burst of creative energy...Arden's vision weaves together island culture, the have-nots and the haves, with remarkably inventive artistry. From the set, complete with a body of water, to the phenomenal ensemble, every piece of this production pulses with an organic exuberance that's impossible to resist...And if the story-telling gets a bit muddled, just let that wonderful score carry you away with its mix of gentle rhythms and pulsing beats."
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"Miraculous things happen when you corral a team of talented artists and let them loose in a sandbox...Music that digs its heels into the earth one minute and floats into the heavens the next. Paired with Arden's ensemble-oriented direction, Brown's unchained choreography, and a near-perfect cast, the production walks the delicate line between the minuscule and the infinite...Every element not only tells a story but carries a palpable reverence for the divine art of storytelling."
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“Exhilarating...Simply done with this exceptional ensemble cast, and especially with Camille A. Brown's striking choreography, carefully crafted for authenticity, this would be a sparkling jewel of a show. But add to that Michael Arden's reminders of humankind's increasing vulnerability as the planet unnaturally evolves, and 'Once On This Island' carries an even greater emotional force."
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“Arden has listened, intently, to the words of Ahrens' book and lyrics, and has a found a solid rationale for reinventing 'Once on This Island'...For all its delights, this production never loses sight of the fact that Ti Moune is headed toward tragedy...The moral of this fable: The world only changes through love, expressed unreservedly and without fear of the consequences. Thanks to Arden and his talented company, this moral has never seemed more urgent.”
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"Arden's done it again, this time gloriously integrating the art of theater magic with the even older art of storytelling, resulting in the nigh unto perfect revival...Flaherty's score offers a mix of styles. The songs for Ti Moune call on Hailey Kilgore to embrace us with a full-voiced, emotional style that suits her character's certitude...Truly, any quibbles with this impressive and thoroughly engaging production are minimal."
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“Deceptively simple – yet, dare I say, powerful...At times, the show’s physical attributes come close to overwhelming the delicate story, but ultimately, they enhance and burnish it...The show really rises on the casting of central role of Ti Moune, and Kilgore delivers all the goods...I suspect once will not be enough for many viewers of ‘Once on This Island’. Nor should it be if you want to experience every facet of the show’s innate richness and Arden’s often-remarkable production.”
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"An absolutely incandescent revival...The delights of this fable-like show, with a rapturous, rhythmically bewitching score by Flaherty and Ahrens, will hold you entranced...The complicated tale, which relies perhaps a little too much on narration, nevertheless comes across with piercing emotional clarity in the buoyant staging...No matter where you look, the theater seems busy with active life...Kilgore glows with big-hearted life...The supporting cast is virtually flawless."
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“Director Michael Arden's inventive and joyous revival of the 1990 Ahrens and Flaherty musical, ‘Once on This Island,’ reinvents the show as if it were brand new; it is as if you have never seen it before. While the original production seemed inauthentic and labored, the new one now at the Circle in the Square, which can hardly be called a revival as it is such a reinvention, sets a sand-covered island before you in its theater in the round, and the doomed but mesmerizing love story.”
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"Defined by its miraculous score, which blends calypso realness with Broadway...Ahrens and Flaherty pack into just 90 minutes all the sensory and emotional impact that most musicals take two hours to deliver...Director Arden expresses the intimacy inherent in the piece by staging it in the round...Perhaps its most miraculous quality of all is that, though it may generate copious tears, we don’t begrudge a single one, and leave the theatre happier than when we entered it."
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"It’s long on charm but short on actual commentary about the island’s nuanced color-driven hierarchy...Flaherty’s score is consistently pleasing...Camille A. Brown’s choreography is somewhat pedestrian, but it comes alive in 'Ti Moune’s Dance,' where Kilgore and Brown pull out all the stops for an exciting African number...Yet for all its flaws, 'Once on This Island' still delights with its lilting score and its lucid telling of a guileless folktale."
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"Director Arden, choreographer Brown and the design team have made sure we remain captivated by their ever changing vision of the island, the sheer magic of the stagecraft they deploy...It doesn't take long for the immediately endearing Kilgore to win our hearts...This musical may be small in its scope, but when compared to some, it achieves its own sense of grandness by being both magical and seductive— an unbeatable combination."
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“Lost none of its luster over the years, and in the production the beauty of this musical has been given its full due and then some...The ensemble contribute in myriad ways to the performance, handing off the narrative to each other in a verbal dance...The cast infuses every moment with spirit, emotion, and music. Everywhere you look something catches your eye...Every single element blends perfectly to bring this already beautiful musical to dazzling, joyous life.”
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“With just one step, you’re immediately immersed in the authenticity of this magical, mystical Caribbean island...It’ll be an experience you’ll never forget...The beloved score is clearly a highlight of the experience...The key to any successful revival is in its ability to present the material afresh...Without fail, incomparable Arden undeniably succeeds in this endeavor...In terms of the performers themselves, well, you know you can’t get any better than this trusty group.”
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“Lush and musically intoxicating…Once I found myself comfortably there, I could breathe in the humid warm air of the Caribbean, and even though those first moments are less than engaging, the first number…grabs hold of our hearts and souls quickly and we are transported...As it proceeds, the story of Ti Moune and her saved young man deepen beyond just young love, expanding into mythology and the meaning of forgiveness and love that lasts beyond a lifetime.”
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"The captivating aura that cast a magical spell fueling the imagination of a little girl as she listens to the folklore of the island is replaced by a big Broadway spectacle that is plagued with excess and self-indulgence...At times the story is lost. Obscured by overwrought staging and a superfluous set...Vocally the cast is a powerhouse but over amplified...Even with all its distraction and pitfalls, for those who have never visited this island before, it will be a marvelous vacation.”
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"With a terrifically appealing cast, as well as a rhythmic score, infectious choreography, vibrantly colorful design, and clever stagecraft, the musical itself could well serve to soothe audience members reeling from the year’s many disasters...One might question some aspects of this 1990 musical...But any such quibbles are swept away like the detritus in a hurricane thanks to the delights large and small in the production."
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“In addition to Laffrey’s eye-popping set of repurposed materials, costume design by Ramos and lighting design by Fisher and Eisenhauer create an island kaleidoscope that magically transforms...Arden deftly navigates the cast through the ever-changing landscape...Kilgore is a knockout...Fortunately, Kilgore is surrounded by immense talent, many of whom have their own shining moments...I have a feeling that repeated visits to this island are in order.”
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“Sparklingly enjoyable revival…A kinetic,…90-minute production with a ‘devised-theatre’ feeling…Regardless of the questions its plot raises, the show bursts with ebullient songs, musically underscored dialogue, colorful choreography, shadow pantomime, gorgeous costumes, and awesome lighting, not to mention exceptional performances…The gifted, beautiful Lea Salonga…, especially in her white gown and exquisite headdress, looks the virtual embodiment of love, reminding us of why she's a star.”
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"Good as it was then, it’s exponentially better now that director Michael Arden has revived the tuner...When Ahrens and Flaherty tell the story this time, their vivaciously enchanting songs become that much more valuable. As the numbers spring into the air they reinforce a troubled people’s indomitable spirit. Also, Camille A. Brown’s spirited choreography becomes that much more uplifting...Transcendent and shockingly relevant-to-today."
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"The ensemble is strong. The dance numbers by Camille A. Brown were the highlights for me. It is hard to believe that there are only four musicians because the sound is not skimpy at all...Michael Arden’s direction is assured. While I will never count it among my favorite musicals, I do have a new respect for it as a well-crafted work that creates a vivid world and offers some creative storytelling along with some appealing music and spirited dancing."
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"Dandridge and Kilgore belong more to the caterwauling school of Broadway braying that current audiences often lavish with ovations. Playing the demon of death, Dandridge is expected to make some loud, questionable sounds. Kilgore’s abrasive tone is much less acceptable, as are her facial grimaces...'Once on This Island' captures Ahrens and Flaherty at their most intimate and therefore their most effective."
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"A life-affirming revival...Against this tragic backdrop, the magnificent company tells book-writer-lyricist Lynn Ahrens and composer Stephen Flaherty’s joyous story of survival and spirituality...In its original Broadway staging, 'Island' was a charming bauble, now it’s a stirring, enveloping experience...Newcomer Hailey Kilgore is a spectacular surprise, displaying a rich, emotive voice, expressive dancing (Brown’s choreography is stunning), and an impressive acting range."
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The idea of a poor dark-skinned woman sacrificing herself so that a wealthy light-skinned guy can live annoyed me so much that I sat there during the entire 90-minute running time asking myself the words of a famous lyric from the show 'why do we tell this story?'...Things only got worse for me when the production indulged itself in another of my bugaboos: the rousing gospel aria delivered by a large black woman...I can't complain about the performances, which were all very good."
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"For most of the musical, you are utterly enveloped and enchanted...If the music is wonderful—truly, every song—and the direction brimming with life and originality, what jars in 'Once On This Island' is the story. Race, racism, and colonialism are examined in the musical but glancingly...It's a terrible ending because it ill-serves the soaring music that has gone before it...But that’s the strange emotional place 'Island' leaves us, once its beautifully sounding storm has abated."
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"Arden’s vivid and transporting revival...It’s not a simple plot to stage...But Arden’s hyper-imaginative revival engulfs audiences in Ahrens and Flaherty’s elemental fable, and makes a convincing case for the power of storytelling extolled by the score...The presumed moral of the stor may not stand up to close inspection. But how the story is told, and who’s doing the telling—in this case, a phenomenally talented cast of color—is something to be inspired by."
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"Given new life with a novel design and staging that immerse us in the captivating world of the eponymous island...A stylistic amalgam that echoes the diverse cultures in the story, with the lively beat of Afro-Antillean song and dance, filled with passion, exuberance, and a communal spirit of hope and joy...The superb design, music, and choreography are matched by a stellar cast that tells the story with across-the-board powerhouse vocals, masterful acting, and potent movement."
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“90 minutes of Caribbean fantasy, a romance of passion and a tale of renewal...Under Arden’s intense direction, the secret of falling under the spell of this sung-through musical is to forget reality and succumb to illusion...The energetic cast dives into the island culture...Unfortunately, much of the lusty singing is over-amplified and, while Flaherty's melodies are catchy and often lovely, Ahrens’ lyrics are not distinct, muddling her usual sense and clarity.”
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“Can seem a bit overburdened. But in this new Broadway revival, director Michael Arden and choreographer Camille A. Brown bring so much energy and enthusiasm to the tale that it hardly matters...However all that may strike you (maybe a little too mythic?), Arden’s theatrical inventiveness, Brown’s ground-shaking, hip gyrating choreography, the Ahrens-Flaherty score and an exemplary cast make it a jubilant, sometimes moving experience."
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"I found the 1990 Broadway debut of 'Once on This Island' too slight and precious for my taste, but I have to admit I was enraptured by the revival I just saw. As directed by Michael Arden and featuring a vibrant ensemble, it sings, it floats, and it soars...The staging propulsively uses the whole space and the whole production feels committed almost to the point of mania."
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"A glorious 90 minutes of Caribbean song and dance...Kilgore is radiant in the role, combining a powerful voice with the obvious wonder of suddenly finding herself on a Broadway stage...But really this is an ensemble piece, and the superb cast is fun to watch cavorting...Brown lets them cut loose with energetic, ethnic-influenced dances, and as he leads the folk tale to its tearjerker of an ending, Arden beautifully embraces the message of 'Why We Tell the Story.'"
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"Under Arden’s imaginative direction, this radiant musical fable flows beautifully, magically, from beginning to end...Reveals more rhythms in its storytelling and beauty in its staging than ever before...The inspirational power of 'Once On This Island' is joyous. Indeed, this production, timed as it is, brings contemporary events like natural disasters and issues like inequality, wealth, and race to mind. In the end, though, what prevails in this entrancing musical is the healing power of storytelling."
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"This utterly delightful burst of Caribbean sunshine could not be more welcome as winter darkness descends on Broadway. A folk tale set to an irresistibly tuneful score...Arden’s exuberant and soulful revival is staged in-the-round...The tremendous ensemble cast is blessed with magnificent voices...Kilgore makes an exultant Broadway debut as Ti Moune, expectant with hope, hr open-faced vivacity crushed by the pain of her rejection. It’s quietly devastating."
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"A tuneful tribute to the Antillean residents’ adaptive ability and will to survive, its spirit well captured in Arden’s cheerfully flamboyant production...Of the many musicals Ahrens and composer Flaherty have written together, this one shows her skills at their best...Flaherty’s score, which basically infuses a set of catchy Broadway tunes with the roll and bounce of Caribbean rhythms, makes a sort of musical mesh hammock in which the story swings with appealing ease."
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"There is great joy and vitality, which continues from the pre-curtain action right through to the last ravishing moment...The deceptively simple story is woven around lush, powerful, music and lyrics, and a closet full of theatrical magic...Not only the gods are powerful talents in this endlessly entertaining production. Our Romeo and Juliet of the Island, Hailey Kilgore and Isaac Powell, are as charming as any breathless audience member could want."
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"Before the show has even begun, the musical has a vibe, a tone, a feeling, a smell, a sensation, an aesthetic. The actors can feel it, but more importantly, the audience can feel it...Of the entire cast, the four actors playing the gods stole the show and certainly gave the best performances...Overall 'Once on this Island' felt more like a song cycle than a musical...More than anything else, this revival of 'Once On This Island' provides an aesthetic experience unlike anything else on Broadway."
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“Arden offers a unique twist in this charming, innovative revival...A lot of confusing talk about gods and sorcery, but all one needs to believe in is the magic of the music...Although the narrative conflict is fairly standard, the message still packs an emotional punch...More about the celebration of life and the gorgeous Afro-Caribbean songbook than anything else...A colorful, immersive experience for everyone, giving audiences a helluva joyful ride."
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“Arden has managed to bring urgency and moving vitality to a musical that can easily fall victim to saccharine sweetness and unearned joy...Less as a benign fairytale and more as a nuanced coming-of-age parable, fraught with pain, as well as the wonders of self-discovery...Ahrens and Flaherty’s rich, unabashedly sentimental score has rarely sounded better...The entire cast is just superlative.”
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“This beguiling fable has a homespun wisdom that’s greater than the sum of its parts...The folk tale’s plot—filled as it is with unabashed sentiment, teenage romance and a celebration of the circle of life, so to speak—alternates between cloyingly and happily beneficent...Arden’s inventive staging begins before the musical proper...90 mostly blissful minutes....The always winning Salonga, whose clear-as-crystal soprano rings out even amid so many astonishingly strong voices on this island.”
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"As directed by Michael Arden, the production, speaks to our senses...Indeed, the musical speaks to the necessity for social action and change – the need to break down the barriers between class, and race. As is her wont, Ahrens tells the story through song. Songs that are as functional in telling the story, as they are rife with beautiful imagery...Similarly, Flaherty’s melodies capture the enchantment...Especially timely in its evocation of youthful heroism."
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"What originally was a lovely, charming, and sweetly ingratiating musical has been turned by into an overbloated revival under director Michael Arden’s frantic staging...The story gets lost...Yet, among all the hurlyburly and over amplified sound there are some very special moments thanks to both Kilgore’s splendid performance and the always valuable Phillip Boykin...The resoundingly wonderful score by Ahrens and Flaherty still remains among the bounciest in years."
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"The show bursts with Caribbean rhythms and dance as the story unfolds. Lea Salonga, Phillip Boykin, Darlesia Cearcy, and Merle Dandridge lead an extraordinary ensemble. Director Michael Arden adeptly intertwines the story elements, successfully integrating music, movement, dance, and the folktale...This show is fantastic, charming, and heart-warming entertainment for the entire family. Do not miss this revival."
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“Every moment of this revival touches the heart and rings true...Splendid direction by Arden evokes magical performances from everyone...The music is splendid...Not only that, but the cast brings the orchestrations to life, singing as instruments, as well as actors. It’s subtle, beautiful, brilliant...'Once on this Island' bends rules and makes new ones...Go ahead, enjoy those bent rules. When the result is as divine as 'Once On This Island,' you’ll be thrilled with the result”
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“A beautiful and intimate night of theater...Ahrens and Flaherty’s score is lush and vibrant, full of spirit and passion that the cast embrace and invest themselves into fully... Kilgore has a beautiful naïveté about her, capturing the wide-eyed wonder of a girl experiencing the world of the wealthy...The supporting cast is wonderful...A simple story with a deeper message of love and sacrifice. It is tender and it is sometimes sad. But it is also a brilliant celebration of color and life.”
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"Coming into the Circle in the Square Theatre on an icy winter’s day, the stark contrast of islanders fishing in the lagoon, milling on the beach, and parading around a goat wearing a diaper was striking...Leaving the theater, deterred only by the icy sidewalks, the exuberant songs stayed with me and all I wanted to do was dance down 50th Street. Perhaps you will as well."
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"In difficult and divisive times, it’s inspiring to have a gorgeous musical to remind us of the shared humanity in our hearts...In this bright and thoughtful revival, differences between people are both the center of the story—and made to seem meaningless...If you are coming to New York anytime soon, this is a not-to-miss musical. The music is wonderful, the cast is glorious, and the production one-of-a-kind."
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“It is a joy to enter director Arden’s warm, immersive tropical world...Kilgore, in an exuberant Broadway debut, has a stunning voice...It’s lovely to see Lea Salonga back on the boards. Her grace, even in an ensemble role, is just entrancing. Ahrens & Flaherty’s music sounds fresh and vital...Audiences will surely want to see this story again and again. And thankfully, there is beautiful production to tell it.”
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"The enchanting 'Once On This Island' is a tale well conceptualized and told sharing the power of love and tradition as it reveals that 'our lives become the stories that we weave.'"
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“Each storyteller breathes gorgeous life into this pulsing musical with effervescent choreography...Arden directs this show with a meticulously detailed hand. He went above and beyond in creating an immersive atmosphere...Arden left no stone unturned with his astonishing direction; his love, passion, and deep connection to this show radiate tangibly throughout the entire piece...This musical completely shook me to my core.”
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